A UK family court considered whether and how UK law recognizes a marriage conducted according to Islamic law that had not been accompanied by a civil law marriage. The husband contended that the couple was never married, and the wife—petitioning for divorce—insisted that they were. The two had signed an Islamic marriage contract (nikāḥ) accompanied … Continue reading Case Commentary: Recognition of Islamic Marriage in the UK

Last week, an English High Court judge ruled in favor of a Muslim woman seeking a divorce from her husband, despite the fact that their marriage was never formally registered in the UK. The couple performed an Islamic nikāh ceremony 20 years ago, which recognized the marriage on religious terms. However, the judge found that … Continue reading In the News: Muslim Marriages in the UK

A recent article in The Huffington Post profiled Dr. Amra Bone, the first female “sharīʿa court” judge in the UK. As a member of the Sharia Council at Birmingham Central Mosque, Dr. Bone hears divorce cases from Muslim couples seeking to get divorced in accordance with their religious traditions (in 2016, she and her colleagues … Continue reading In the News: Sharīʿa Courts in the UK

The parties, of Lebanese background, were married in Kuwait in 1973, though had moved to Australia in 1985 and maintained dual citizenship. In October 1998 the parties divorced Islamically through a local Islamic centre, then in November 1998 attended the Lebanese embassy and executed a power of attorney to allow their respective lawyers in Lebanon to proceed … Continue reading Contemporary Primary Sources: Taffa & Taffa [2009] FamCA 85